Can you dig it? Cranberry Township can after awarding contracts and entering into funding agreements for the MSA Thruway project.
The Board of Supervisors at their November 21 meeting approved a $12,048,068.16 contract with Allegheny Excavating Inc. for the project, which will connect Interstate 79 to the Cranberry Springs development by constructing a tunnel beneath Route 228. The project is named after MSA, which donated about $3.5 million of land for the project.
Work on the project is expected to begin in the spring, with completion set for the end of 2021. Work includes the tunnel itself, ramps, a roundabout connecting the project at Cranberry Woods and sidewalks.
Throughout the project, traffic on Route 228 will be maintained.
The Board also entered into funding agreements with Sippel Enterprises L.P. and UPMC for the project. They also approved a $1,119,000 project management and inspection service contract with Whitman Requardt & Associates LLP.
The project follows the Master Plan that was developed in 1995, which depicted the future of the Route 228 Corridor when it was just a two lane road. All subsequent improvements in the Corridor have been consistent with that Master Plan.
During Thursday’s meeting, the Board thanked officials from Sippel Enterprises and MSA, who was the first partner to step up and help advance the vision.
The project, when completed, will ensure the Route 228 Interchange will avoid the conditions that exist at the Route 19/Interstate 79 northbound intersection.
The Township will contribute about $2.5 million toward the total project cost.